Infant cribs which disassemble for storage are well known. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,879,773 and 3,979,783 to Spencer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,896,513 to Boucher et al, or U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,004 to Kessel. Collapsible and portable travel cribs are also well known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,097,942 to Bridger, U.S. Pat. No. 4,250,580 to Eichenauer, or U.S. Pat. No. 4,692,953 to Fetters.
Prior art infant cribs are often made of wood which have hinged joints that come apart from the action of children rocking back and forth. The screws pull out of the wood frame resulting in structural failure as well as presenting a danger of pinched fingers. Glued joints where the rungs connect to the top and bottom rails, also are weakened by the rocking action of children. Even if these joints are secured by a pin or nail, they can still come apart causing structural failure and possible harm to the child. Conventional cribs also typically employ caster wheels which either break through the side of the leg or fall out and are often lost.
In a conventional crib, bottom panels start to sag over time, from both physical stress and accumulated moisture. Eventually the bottom panel falls through, dropping the child to the floor.
Also, prior art cribs are often inconvenient to disassemble or adjust. For example, in some designs, to extend the legs, one must unbolt at least 4 of the 8 bolts that hold the legs in place, and relocate these bolts into different holes once the legs have been extended. Often the leg bolts are misplaced. The procedure is time consuming and tools are sometimes required. Furthermore, the mattress pad typically must be removed in order to disassemble and collapse the crib, and in most cases the mattress must be carried and stored separately.
Also, a conventional foldable crib and mattress cannot be easily cleaned. Furthermore, conventional foldable cribs do not stack well, and cannot be stacked more than 6 or 7 units high without possible damage. Typically, prior art cribs are stored side by side and tend to snag on one another when one of the cribs is removed.